All 51 Indonesian airlines were banned from flying in the EU in 2007 after a series of fatal accidents, including the March 2007 crash of Garuda Indonesia Flight 200, which killed 21 passengers and one crew member.

In 2009, the EU lifted the ban on four of those airlines, including Garuda, and the delegation that made the decision said Lion Air could be taken off the list by the end of that year, the New York Times reported.

The Federal Aviation Administration does not rate, rank, or blacklist airlines, but it has assessed the Indonesian Directorate General of Civil aviation "as not being in compliance" with international safety standards.

Indonesian air carriers continue to experience air incidents and accidents. U.S. citizens traveling to and from Indonesia are encouraged to fly directly to their destinations on international carriers from countries whose civil aviation authorities meet international aviation safety standards for the oversight of their air carrier operations under the FAA's International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program.

Lion Air operates mostly domestic flights, its international destinations include Vietnam and Thailand.